 | | | Red Tailed Hawk Photos Reg Barrett and Bill Hudson | | | | | | I don't know about you, but I am so inspired by the birds we see in our backyards, our community and our open space areas in Lamorinda. We can count on them to be the species we see and enjoy during the day.
In my backyard I have enjoyed over 30 different species from the friendly Chickadees to the large Band Tailed Pigeons. My favorite are the corvids for their intelligence and the connection I have with them.
One Raven that visits me each day left me a clam shell as a thank you for putting out seed and suet cakes. At the Orinda Nature Area, the bird watching opportunities are limitless. The summer campers enjoyed the Bird and Trees connections on Wednesdays. With binoculars they learned the many different species of bird at the feeders and in the open spaces. They loved the activity and were inspired to become lifelong bird watchers.
I am hoping that we can involve our youth in the annual Christmas Bird Count in December, sponsored by the National Audubon Society, which would involve volunteering two times during the day: at 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 18. The Oakland count circle extends from Treasure Island northeast to the San Pablo Reservoir in Contra Costa County, and south to Saint Mary's College in Moraga and the Oakland International Airport. (That includes not just Oakland but the cities of Alameda, Emeryville, Berkeley, Albany, Orinda, Moraga, and Lafayette.)
Registration opens in October. For information, visit https://goldengateaudubon.org/birding-resources/birding-information/christmas-bird-counts/.
Books about birds worth reading include "Raven's Winter" and "Mind of a Raven" by Bernd Heinrich; "The Genius of Birds, the Bird Way" by Jennifer Ackerman; "What is it like to be a bird?" by David Allen Sibley; and "Important Bird Areas in California" by David S. Cooper.
Readers will be inspired by these books. |
Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA